This unexceptional story is unattractively presented. There is no interior title page and instead the first page of the book contains the ISBN and dedication information. The cartoon monochromatic blue illustrations are awkwardly drawn. And all of the Fog Spinner's own dialogue is presented entirely in uppercase characters, which is very annoying to read.
Not recommended.
Lorraine Douglas is Youth Services Coordinator for the Winnipeg Public
Library.
Book Review
The Rosalie Series:
Rosalie's Catastrophes.
Ginette Anfousse. Illustrated by Marisol Sarrazin.
Translated by Linda Gaboriau.
Charlottetown: Ragweed Press, 1994. 93pp. paper, $5.95.
ISBN 0-921556-47-0.
Rosalie's Battles.
Ginette Anfousse. Illustrated by Marisol Sarrazin.
Translated by Linda Gaboriau.
Charlottetown: Ragweed Press, 1994. 93pp. paper, $5.95.
ISBN 0-921556-50-0.
Rosalie's Big Dream.
Ginette Anfousse. Illustrated by Marisol Sarrazin.
Translated by Linda Gaboriau.
Charlottetown: Ragweed Press, 1994. 93pp. paper, $5.95.
ISBN 0-921556-52-7.
Grades K - 3 / Ages 5 - 10.
Review by Tracey Keryluk
excerpt:
Now I don't want you to think that I say ``Holy hopping horrors" because I'm badly brought up. I say it because it annoys my mothers. Actually, it drives all seven of them crazy. I like teasing them once in a while, they're so perfect.
I am exactly nine years, seven months and three days old and my name is Rosalie. My life began with a catastrophe, one holy hopping horror of an enormous catastrophe.
Thus begins Rosalie's Catastrophes, the first in the ``Rosalie" series. Told from Rosalie's own exuberant perspective, the reader is given an introduction to both her life and her family. She has not one, but seven mothers, since her seven eccentric aunts adopted her following a plane crash that killed her parents.
Perhaps because of her unconventional family, or perhaps, as Rosalie's friend believes, because Rosalie is a Gemini-Horse, Rosalie continually finds herself in one adventure after another. Her attempt to become the next Fred Astaire, which includes gluing six quarters to the bottoms of her runners, is particularly entertaining. Much to the consternation of her aunt, she leaves four hundred and thirty-two little marks in the house's hardwood floors.
Great for use as first chapter books, I particularly liked the way Rosalie's experiences encourage questions and discussion on such diverse topics as the Chinese horoscope, the Viet Nam War, pneumonia, and tap dancing.
Ginette Anfousse has won a number of honours including the Mr. Christie Book Award and a nomination for the Governor-General's Literary Award. These translations of her work, by Linda Gaboriau, are excellent.
The illustrations also add greatly to the books, especially in the latter two where the drawings are more plentiful. They expressively convey Rosalie's scrapes and adventures, including the snowball war that breaks out at school, and her attempts to become the best video-clip tap-dancer in North America. Marisol Sarrazin is a particularly apt choice for the illustrator of these books since she is the author's daughter, and was herself the inspiration for some of the characters she helps depict.
As Rosalie would say, this series is ``holy hopping" recommended.
Holy hopping recommended.
Tracey Keryluk is a librarian working for Computer Services at the
University of Manitoba.
Book Review
Butterflies and Moths.
Bobbie Kalman and Tammy Everts.
Toronto: Crabtree Publishing Company, 1994. 32pp, paper, $7.95 / library bound, $20.95.
ISBN 0-86505-614-5 (library bound).
ISBN 0-86505-714-1 (paper).
CIP.
Grades K - 6 / Ages 3 - 12
Review by Brenda Partridge.
Bobbie Kalman and Tammy Everts have combined their skills to create a book that is excellent for insect research or appreciation. The table of contents and index make it simple to locate data on the metamorphosis, senses, coloration, and behaviour of the insects. All information is presented in easy-to-understand, yet very clear vocabulary. The glossary explains thirteen of the highlighted words from the text -- for example: osmeterium -- a caterpillar's horns; prolegs -- the leg-like stumps that help a caterpillar cling to leaves and twigs.
Each page has at least one vividly coloured photograph. The close-up techniques used allow life-like presentation. Great attention is given to detail and to the way colour is used. Photographs have coloured frames, page
numbers are encased in moth shapes, charts have shaded backgrounds, and headlines change colour. Illustrations add more to the rainbow effect and balance each page. Non-readers would receive much enjoyment from the visual
presentation.
Each topic is handled on a two-page spread -- from metamorphosis to food; from protective coloration to hibernation and migration. The final page in the book gives an explanation of the importance of each insect photograph. This gives students an opportunity to use another tool to search for information. It also prevents the pages from becoming unbalanced or cluttered with print.
Bobbie Kalman's non-fiction books are always a welcome addition to our Information Centres at the elementary level. Another book in her Crabapple series that follows an identical format, Wings, Wheels and Sails, is also reviewed in this issue of CM.
Highly recommended.
Brenda Partridge is a Library-Resource teacher at Percy Centennial Public School in Warkworth, Ontario.
Book Review
Wings, Wheels and Sails.
Bobbie Kalman.
Toronto: Crabtree Publishing Company, 1995. 32pp, paper, $7.95 / library bound, $20.95.
ISBN 0-86505-608-0 (library bound).
ISBN 0-86505-708-7 (paper).
CIP.
Grades K - 6 / Ages 3 - 12.
Review by Brenda Partridge.
Transportation is the theme for this entry in Bobbie Kalman's ``Crabapple" series of non-fiction books for children. Using a format identical to that of Butterflies and Moths, (also reviewed in this issue), Kalman is equally successful in Wings, Wheels and Sails.
When children are searching for information, they need facts that are easy to locate and simple to understand. Here there are clear examples of water, air, and land transportation with photographs, charts, and terminology that will attract and hold a child's interest. On a sailboat, did you know that the kitchen is called the galley and the toilet is the head? Or did you know that a maglev train does not have wheels? Historical facts about the first means of each kind of transportation are presented with illustrations and photographs.
Once again Kalman's visual presentation is so strong that the books could be thoroughly enjoyed by non-readers as well as older students. Great detail is given to page setup, colour balance, and visual appeal. Each page number is encased in a miniature hot air balloon and each photograph (over thirty-five in all) has a coloured frame. Photos often show children being transported and sketches depict only the detail necessary to accompany the written text. I will have several copies of this book in our school's Information Centre.
Highly recommended.
Brenda Partridge is a Library-Resource teacher at Percy Centennial Public School in Warkworth, Ontario.
Book Exerpt
The Primrose Path.
Carol Matas.
Winnipeg: Blizzard, 1995. 152pp, paper, $9.95.
ISBN 0-921368-55-0.
Chapter Two
New Girl in Town
I sit in my new house, listening to the clock tick. I feel completely lost.
Bewildered. How could this have happened? One minute Baba was dead. The
next week Dad came home and said he'd been offered a job teaching at a
community college down East. A steady paycheck. Teaching art and art
administration. Good salary, but even better hours. And with Baba gone and
his family living down East and Mom's sister down there too -- why not move?
Nothing to keep us here. Unless Mom's job? But no, Mom said she could get a
library job anywhere and it was all decided, except no one asked me. But I
told them. I told them I wasn't going. I'd stay with Rachel's family. I
wasn't moving. Start grade nine, high school, in a completely strange
place? No way.
But here I am. Sitting in a strange house, no friends, thousands of miles
away from Rachel, school about to start in two days. And I find out, just
today, that Mom has enrolled me, not in public school, but in the Hebrew
school just down the street. Has she gone crazy? The school is attached to
a synagogue and my mother says Kaddish there. That's the prayer for the
dead. My mother asked Rabbi Wienberg how often she should say it. He told
her every weekend would be fine, it didn't have to be every day. But she
wants to do it every day and she does.
I just got into town today. I did put my foot down and refuse to come
before summer was over. Rachel and I went to B'nai B'rith camp together and
had a great time. Mom, Dad, and Jordan have been here since the beginning
of August.
I've unpacked my clothes and I've looked at the blank walls in my room for
long enough. I decide to go down to the synagogue and check it out. Mom is
there with Jordan.
It is the end of August but really hot. I walk down the long block of small
red brick houses. Mom said they bought in this area because it's the
shortest commute to Dad's work. I reach the one-storey, red brick building
at the end of our block. I pull open the glass door and move into the
blissful cool of the air-conditioned foyer. I find this heat
unbearable -- it's six pm and still thirty degrees. I look around. The foyer
is empty. Straight ahead are stairs leading both up and down and I can see
doors off the hallways. Just to my left are four wooden doors. I try the
first one. I open it just a crack and hear the sounds of prayers before I
see anything. I open it more.
The first thing I notice is my mother standing all alone on the right side
of the sanctuary. My eyes turn to follow the sound of the chanting. On the
left side are around fifteen men, half of them dressed in black hats and
suits, the others dressed in regular suits, some with their jackets off.
They are swaying back and forth reciting the prayers very fast. Between
where my mother stands and the men is a wooden barrier topped with green
plastic plants. In the centre at the front is the Bimah, the ark which
holds the Torah, and a few seats. I notice the carpet is red, the wooden
benches covered with bright blue cushions. A very young black-suited man
faces the other men, leading them in the prayers. I back out before I am
noticed, turn and flee out of the synagogue into the heat. I leave the
small red brick building behind and hurry home. I bang into the kitchen,
sit at the table, and wait.
Finally my mother walks in.
I leap up, all my anger exploding.
``Mother, in case you haven't noticed, that's an Orthodox synagogue. You
didn't tell me it was Orthodox. This is a nightmare. I'm not going there.
``Never!"
She glares back at me, very annoyed, as she lifts Jordan out of his
stroller and puts him on the floor.
``Now just a minute, young lady, don't you use that tone of voice with me!
Dad and I will decide where you go to school and that's that." Then she
sits down at the table and smiles. ``Come on honey, calm down. What's the
problem?"
``Are you kidding? What's the problem? I want to go to a regular school!"
``Look, Debbie," she says, getting that ``firm" tone in her voice, ``you and
Rachel were so busy with your skiing and your NFTY last year that your
school work suffered badly. Even if you consider a C plus average adequate,
your dad and I do not. This school is supposed to be one of the top
academic schools in the city. The grade nine class is also the oldest class
at the school and you'll be able to continue with these kids right until
university."
``But it's little. It's a little dinky school. I thought it was going to be
a big school with thousands of kids and a swimming pool. And even then I
didn't want to go. I just want to go to regular school. I'll meet Jewish
kids if I join NFTY. Where's the closest Reform temple? Aren't we going to
join a temple?"
Mom pauses. ``Well, I don't know. I don't mind this one for now. I know it's
Orthodox but it's close and it's easy for me to say Kaddish every day this
way. The nearest Reform temple is a half-hour drive away."
I get up and begin to pace.
``But why do I have to go to school here?"
``Well, it's the teaching. The Rabbi himself will be your home-room teacher.
He's brilliant and I've heard he's the best teacher in the city."
Then something else occurs to me. ``Is the school mixed?" I demand.
I mean, I know that no boy would ever want to go out with me -- I'm too tall,
my hair is a homely dull brown, and I have boring brown eyes to match. I'm
so shy I know I'd never ask anyone out but if it's an all girls' school I
won't even have the smallest chance. By grade nine everyone back home is
dating.
``Yes, dear, I told you they're very progressive. Mixed classes, Hebrew
studies and religious studies in the morning, English in the afternoon."
``But what do I need all those religious and Jewish studies for?" I protest.``I've had my bat mitzvah, I've gone to night school, I know all about
Chanukkah and Passover and Rosh Hashanah. This is just crazy. I don't want
to go to some small Orthodox weird place."
``Debbie, don't worry. It's just a good school. And the Jewish studies won't
hurt. It's good to know all you can -- then, when you grow up, you can make an
informed choice about what kind of a Jew you want to be."
``Well, I'd rather be taking French," I mutter. ``Do me a lot more good when
I try to find work."
Why hadn't Mom asked me about the school before enrolling me? She could
have checked out the different schools with me. It wasn't like her. Not at
all. This Rabbi must have made the school sound really great.
``Anyway," I add, ``don't you feel weird praying in a place where men and
women are separated?"
I mean, I know my mother is this major feminist so I can't quite figure
this out. And Baba would never have allowed it.
``Well, it was hard to get used to at first, still is, frankly. But it is
close and the Rabbi has just been fabulous. He came to call," she explains,``when we were here signing the house papers. The people we bought the house
from were members of his congregation. They'd told him about Baba. So he
came, asked me to come and pray any time at his synagogue. I was surprised.
I told him I thought women didn't usually do that in an Orthodox synagogue.
He said women were always welcome." She pauses. ``Of course it feels strange
being the only one there, usually, but it is awfully handy and he's been
terrific. You'll change your mind once you get to know him."
I stalk into my bedroom and throw myself on my bed. I feel miserable. I
have one good friend who is now thousands of miles away, and the chances of
my making any more aren't good -- I'm too shy and I just clam up when people
speak to me. And who knows what the kids at this school are like. A bunch
of religious nuts probably. I realize that I've never actually been in an
Orthodox synagogue before today. Why couldn't we at least join a Reform
temple so I could be in the NFTY group? Still, Mom was right about me
getting involved with NFTY -- maybe she thinks I'll have an easier time in a
small school because I'm so shy. But she doesn't want to say that and hurt
my feelings.
Maybe I should pull a Rachel, throw a tantrum and just refuse to go. Rachel
always gets her way -- she just has to throw a big enough fit. It's not my
style though. I hate scenes. When Mom and Dad were fighting I just ran for
cover. I tried throwing a fit about the move and it didn't get me anywhere.
I suppose I could try the school for one week and if it's awful I'll put my
foot down and just refuse to go.
When the first day of school arrives I feel so sick I can barely get out of
bed. The heatwave continues. It'll be thirty-five degrees by noon and now,
at eight in the morning, it's already twenty-five degrees. Our house is
air-conditioned but the second you get outside you melt. The combination of
heat and humidity is so bad you feel like you're in a steam bath. I worried
all weekend about what to wear, trying on everything I own two million
times, and finally decided on belted khaki shorts, a khaki short-sleeved
shirt, and sandals. I put my hair in a French braid and let the braid hang
down my back. I look in the mirror. I'm too fat. Baba was right. Dad says
I'm the perfect weight for my height, but I'm really big boned so I'll
never have that skinny frail look. It's not fair. I want that skinny frail
look! I can't eat a thing. It's 8:05 and I'm completely ready. I just pace
around the house for half an hour. Dad tries to talk to me and I just ask
him how he can agree with Mom about this school.
``She was so revved up about it," he replies. ``She's been going to the
Rabbi's office almost every day over the summer to talk about Baba and her
death. He's been a comfort to her. She took Baba's death very hard, you
know."
Well, I can understand that going to talk to this guy makes her feel
better -- after all, Rabbi Wienberg really helped me when I went to see him.
But why can't she do that and leave me out of it? I could still go to
regular school.
``She convinced me it would really help your marks," Dad continues. ``But if
it's too strict and too Orthodox, Debbie, I'll talk to her, and you'll go
somewhere else. I'm a little uncomfortable about it myself, quite frankly."
Well, that makes me feel a bit better. Like it's not a jail sentence or
something.
Finally I walk into the heat, and drag myself down our street to the
school. The school bus has just arrived and kids are tumbling out of it and
racing into the building. There is a cement deck in the front where some
young boys are playing ball, and then the two sets of glass doors. These
are open and parents and kids of all ages are talking and greeting each
other and babbling and I just feel like shrinking away into a blob and
disappearing. How am I going to walk into the classroom? Also, there's
something not quite right, but in all the confusion I can't put my finger
on what it is. I manage to find the office which is up a set of steps and
the secretary calls the vice-principal who is an older woman with curly
white hair. She takes me to my home room. I walk in and there is a group of
about eight girls standing in a small circle talking and laughing. The
vice-principal, Mrs. Lacy, leads me to them and introduces me but I can't
catch their names, I'm too nervous. And now, the thing that was nagging at
me when I first arrived hits me and I realize why I felt things looked a
bit strange. I am the only girl in shorts. Not only do I feel like
disappearing but I can feel myself turning beet red. I blush at the drop of
a hat and I also break out into hives all over my face, they look like
little pimples, when I get really nervous. And now I am really upset. Why
didn't Mom warn me? All the girls are wearing skirts which reach at least
mid-calf and most of them have their arms covered too. The boys are
standing in another corner and some of them are wearing shorts. I'm really
confused.
I am also mortified, upset, and slightly revolted. I mean, I feel stupid
being the only girl dressed this way but I think they are even more stupid
to be dressed the way they are. Don't they fry in this heat, all covered up
like that? And why? Isn't this the nineties? We aren't living in some
little Russian village any more. And if the boys can wear shorts, why can't
the girls?
The bell rings and jolts me out of one moment of panic into another. Where
do I sit? What do I do? A very tall man, wearing a black, pinstriped,
three-piece suit, walks into the room. He has curly black hair, blue eyes,
and is clean shaven. Quickly he scans the room, the blue eyes landing
directly on me. His face lights up and he gives me this incredibly warm
smile -- I can't help but realize how handsome he is.
``You must be Debbie."
I nod.
``Have you met the others?"
I nod again.
He takes my hand, which shocks me and embarrasses me even more -- no teacher
back home would ever do that! He leads me to a desk, his hand warm and dry
in mine, and says, ``I'm Rabbi Werner. I'll put you here right beside Mara
and Rebecca."
I sink into my seat, happy to be able to sit down, hoping to fade into the
woodwork. He turns and I notice that his kipah is bobby-pinned on each side
so it won't fall off. The boys in the class have done the same thing. I
think it's strange that no one has invented a kipah that will stay on all
by itself -- maybe one that has Velcro which sticks to the hair or something.
And then I notice that one boy hasn't used bobby-pins and I realize that
his kipah is probably stuck on his head with Velcro and this thought is so
silly and I am so nervous that I burst out in a sort of giggly snort before
I can stop myself. The girls turn and stare. The Rabbi seems not to hear
and soon has grabbed everyone's attention away from me. Thank God. He
starts fooling around with the girls, telling jokes, hugging them, teasing
them. I'm too frazzled to really hear the conversation, it's all going by
too quickly for me to catch. The girls are all screaming with laughter. The
boys are basically hanging around on their side of the room, trying to look
cool. Still, I think some of them look like they'd like to be included.
Rabbi Werner is the grade nine Hebrew teacher, principal of the school, and
head Rabbi of the congregation. Must be a busy guy.
The class sits down and he perches on the edge of his desk.
``First a little joke," he smiles, and he gives me a wink. I can feel myself
blush.
``Mrs. Levi rushed to the door of her son's room, banged on it, and yelled,
`Norman, Norman, get up, its late!'
``Her son muttered through his sleep, `I don't wanna get up.'
``Mrs. Levi rushed into the room and shook him. `Norman, you have to get
up -- get washed, get dressed, eat, go to school!'
`` `I don't wanna go to school,' Norman objected.
`` `Norman!' his mother said, clasping her hands over her mouth in dismay,
`What's gotten into you? How can you not want to go to school?'
`` `I hate school!' Norman replied. `The teachers despise me. The kids call
me ``four-eyes." They make fun of the way I talk. They throw spitballs at
me! They put nails on my chair. They --'
`` `Norman, stop this at once. You have to go to school.'
`` `Why!'
`` `Well, there are two good reasons. One, you're forty years old --'
`` `Oh Mom.'
`` `And two, you're the principal!' ''
The whole class bursts into roars of laughter, me included. And after a
good laugh, I feel much better. This guy doesn't seem so bad after all.
Certainly nothing like the strict, serious, rigid kind of person I imagined
an Orthodox rabbi-principal would be like.
He's laughing along with us. Now he claps his hands and starts to talk
enthusiastically about what we'll be studying this year.
He has a nice voice, not low, even a little high, but very warm and he's
just full of energy. Although I was determined to hate every moment, I can
feel my resolve weakening a bit.
``We will start the year," he announces, ``with Genesis. We'll begin at the
beginning. The story of Adam and Chavah," he launches right in, ``is the
most misunderstood story of all time. You see, Adam was really a being who
incorporated both male and female. In order to create two separate beings,
Hashem figuratively took a rib from this being and created man and woman.
They are different but equal. Two halves of a whole."
It takes me a second to realize that Chavah must be Eve's Hebrew name and
that the Rabbi uses Hashem for God. Still, his voice is compelling, his
manner relaxed, and for a moment I forget to be self-conscious, I forget
it's my first hour at a new school and I get interested. I've never heard
this interpretation before. Besides, I was sure Orthodox men didn't view
woman as their equals. Why else aren't Orthodox women allowed to read from
the Torah? So to hear him say this really surprises me.
One of the girls next to me puts up her hand.
``Yes, Rebecca?" says the Rabbi.
``Rabbi Werner," Rebecca says, ``if women are so equal, can you explain why
boys thank God every morning in their prayers for not having been born
female?"
Do they do that? I think. That's just disgusting. Also, I'm very surprised
that one of these girls should ask such a question. Don't they just accept
everything they are taught?
``Women," Rabbi Werner answers, ``have a special spiritual station. They are
so superior they don't have to pray. Men on the other hand are commanded to
pray three times a day because they need more spiritual guidance. A man
thanks Hashem he is not a woman as a positive affirmation of being a man
and being allowed to pray. Not because women are less important."
``Debbie," he says to me, and my heart leaps into my throat. He's not going
to single me out, is he? He couldn't.
``Do you know what Chavah first said to Adam?" He looks at me with his
bright blue eyes.
Everyone is staring at me. I can't speak. I can feel my hives popping out,
again. How can he call on me on the first day? I don't know what to think,
I don't know anything about any of this. All I know is how much I don't
know. I manage a small shrug.
`` `After we eat the apple, Adam, we're going to do what?' "
Everyone is laughing. I am so panicked that at first I don't realize he's
just joking with me. Finally I manage a big grin, the relief I feel is
incredible. He didn't expect an answer. Thank goodness I didn't try some
big long explanation.
He turns to a girl with brown hair, pretty plain -- I hate her dress,
something out of the middle ages.
``Sarah, do you think women aren't treated equally in Orthodox Judaism?"
``Well," Sarah replies, with no embarrassment or hesitation, ``my mother says
it's wonderful to be treated with respect. I think so too."
``Yeah but," Rebecca calls out, ``if we get so much respect why can't we
carry the Torah? Or read from it?"
My question exactly.
``The answer is not in your inferiority," the Rabbi answers, ``but in male
weakness. A man shouldn't hear a woman's voice in song or his thoughts
might stray from prayer."
Much to my surprise, Rebecca hoots with laughter at his answer.
I expect him to get annoyed, but instead he grins happily at Rebecca.
``We are the weaker sex," he says with a wink.
Rebecca flushes. The girls giggle. I'm not sure what's going on. Some kind
of inside joke? I glance at the boys. They try to get involved.
``Weaker sex. Sure, Rabbi. Not us," they protest in their most macho voices.
Everyone starts shouting to each other across the room. Rabbi Werner claps
his hands.
``Class! Class!"
Suddenly he's talking to me again.
``You see, Debbie, equality is more than the way things seem on the surface.
It's how the society functions in reality, day to day.
``Well, Debbie, just look at the girls in this class and see who talks the
most and who runs the class and you'll see that girls here aren't afraid to
speak up. They may dress differently than those at public school but
they're ten times more confident and assertive than the girls there."
The girls meanwhile are glowing from all the praise. The discussion lasts
until the end of the period. I am so busy being impressed with the girls
and their questions that I hardly notice the boys -- they just fade into the
background. I do have a look to see if there are any cute ones. One or two
seem OKAY but there aren't any real hunks or anything. Anyway, I like Rabbi
Werner, a lot. The discussion is really fun and interesting. He tells
wonderful stories so that one moment you can hear a pin drop in class, the
next the whole class is laughing uproariously.
Finally he wraps up the discussion and says to Rebecca, ``Rebecca, did you
hear about this really pretty girl who suffered from hay fever?" Everyone
laughs, as Rebecca blows her nose right on cue.
``Anyway, on her way out to a very fancy dinner party this girl figured she would need at least two handkerchiefs to get through the evening -- she tucked one into her sleeve and the extra one into the bodice of her dress.
``At dinner, having used up one handkerchief, she reached into her bosom for
the other. She searched about for it with no success until she became aware
that all conversation had ceased and everyone was staring at her.
`` `Excuse me!' " she exclaimed, `` `but I know I had two when I arrived.' "
Everyone in the class squeals with laughter, including Rebecca who blows
her nose loudly, flushes, and grins at the Rabbi. The boys, of course,
really laugh that one up. I feel a little weird about it -- I mean, it's not
the kind of joke you'd expect a rabbi to tell, but no one else in the class
seems the least bit uncomfortable. Boy, don't tell me I'm more of a prude
than these Orthodox kids. That would be too bizarre!
Is it possible that school could actually be fun? Even interesting? Maybe
Mom wasn't so stupid after all.
The Primrose Path is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to places, events, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Caution
This novel is fully protected under the copyright laws of Canada and all other countries of the Copyright Union and is subject to royalty. Except in the case of brief passages quoted in the review of this book, no part of this publication (including cover design ) may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means, electronic or mechanical, including recording and information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, or, in the case of photocopying or other reprographic copying, without a licence from Canadian Reprography Collective ( CANCOPY).
Feature
The Great Canadian Trivia Challenge.
Steve Caldwell, the coordinator of the Triva Challenge, has been kind enough to giveCM permission to run his weekly Great Canadian Trivia Contest, a great way to motivate students to spend some time in the Library. Here's how it works, and this week's question:
THE GREAT CANADIAN TRIVIA CONTEST:
IT'S BACK!
Welcome to the second year of the Great Canadian Trivia Contest.
The History Department of Colonel By Secondary School in Ottawa,
Ontario is sponsoring a Canadian Studies Internet trivia contest.
This contest is designed to appeal to students in Grades 7 - 10
although other grades are more than welcome to participate.
INFORMATION:
Each week a new question will be presented. Students
participating in the contest will, in all likelihood, have to do
some research to find the correct answer to our weekly question.
Questions are based on some aspect of Canadian Studies. Questions
will include the subjects of history, geography, culture, natural
science, sports, current events, law and any other aspect of
Canadian studies that we can think of.
A new question will be posted by every Friday inCM (the trivia contest is also distributed through Schoolnet a few days earlier). Answers must be received by 8:00 a.m. eastern time a week
from the following Saturday. Answers will be tabulated, and the
correct answer, along with the winners' names, will be posted in
two weeks. Thus, there will be a new question each week while the
answer and winners will be posted two weeks later.
We plan on offering a few nominal prizes so make sure you let us
know where we can reach you. We would also like participants to
let us know if they are entering as an individual, a group, or if
they are representing a particular class and school. We will try
to award prizes for individuals/groups and classes.
Last year we had participants from across Canada and the United
States and as far away as China. We welcome all new participants
as well as our returning veteran contestants.
In addition to your e-mail address, please send us your school's
name and the grade and/or class that you are in, as well as your
postal address.
WINNERS:
Last week's correct answer and succesful participants
will be posted next week.
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION:
This is another two-parter. Both parts must
be answered correctly to receive credit.
- What is the name of
the mountain with the highest elevation in Canada?
- What is its
elevation above sea level in metres?
SEND IN YOUR ANSWERS:
Remember, don't post your answers toCM. Instead, send your
answers to Steve Caldwell at one of the following e-mail
addresses:
Steve_Caldwell@colby.on.infoshare.ca
or
stepcald@village.ca
How do you subscribe?
Send e-mail to: camera@mbnet.mb.ca
Postal address:
CM Subscriptions
100 Arthur Street, Suite 208
Winnipeg, MB R3B 1H3
Copyright © 1995 the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.
Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364
Go back to CM Welcome page
Go to CM Index of Reviews
From the Editor
Thanks to Blizzard!
Book Reviews